Insight Into the Internal and External Motivation of Mongolian Students

Abstract

Academic motivation is a critical determinant of students’ academic performance, engagement, persistence, and overall educational success. Insights into students’ extrinsic and intrinsic motivation can assist educators in identifying at-risk learners, creating more supportive learning environments, and facilitating educational policy and decision-making.

A total of 415 undergraduate students from three schools (School of Social Sciences and Humanities, School of Natural Science, School of Engineering and Technology) of the National University of Mongolia participated in the study. We measured the tendency of intrinsic motivation, extrinsic motivation, and amotivation across gender and fields of study using the Academic Motivation Scale (AMS-C-28; Vallerand et al., 1992), a widely used instrument grounded in Self-Determination Theory, hence descriptive statistics were applied.

The findings revealed that 60.2% of participants demonstrated high levels of academic motivation, whereas approximately one-third (32.6%) exhibited lower levels of motivation that may require educational attention and support. Furthermore, students reported lower levels of intrinsic motivation than extrinsic motivation, suggesting a tendency to engage in learning primarily for external rewards and outcomes rather than for personal interest, intellectual curiosity, and self-development. Although no substantial differences in overall motivation were observed across gender and fields of study, variations were identified within specific motivation categories.

The practical significance of this study lies in its contribution to understanding the motivational profiles of Mongolian undergraduate students. The findings provide evidence-based insights for educators and university administrators seeking to enhance student engagement, strengthen intrinsic motivation, and create learning environments that support long-term academic success and lifelong learning..